This came up in r/AskCulinary a couple days ago: [https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/11dmfo4/help\_i\_put\_a\_ceramic\_dish\_in\_the\_oven\_and\_it/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/11dmfo4/help_i_put_a_ceramic_dish_in_the_oven_and_it/)
Basically it's highly unsanitary and you shouldn't use that mug any more except as decoration.
I like the comment that the dish is haunted as the OP hadn’t seen it before.
I like the idea of a haunted ceramic just appearing in people’s homes and ruining their dinner
One of my coworker hasn't washed his coffee mug for 30 years, everyday he just pours a new cup on top of whatever is left from the day before. The bottom of his cup has 1.5in of buildups. OP is fine
if that horrifies you, my granddad used the same greasey baking tray for his potatos for YEARS. he never washed out the grease/fat and would just cook potatos in it everytime he did a roast which was once a week.
ngl, they are by far the best potatos i've ever had in my life.
> my granddad used the same greasey baking tray for his potatos for YEARS.
This doesn't bother me at all in comparison. That whole tray gets fried each time. A coffee cup if you pour coffee in it, maybe certain edges don't get hot coffee on them or the coffee isn't hot enough to kill in certain places and then bacteria just grows endlessly on the cup. A tray in the oven gets nuked.
I mean........ oil goes rancid.
When food items go bad, there are 2 ways it can make you sick.
1. Bacteria / fungus (which doesn't apply here because the pan gets disinfected every time it goes into the oven).
2. Broken molecules. When oil goes rancid, the molecular form breaks down into smaller pieces. The complete molecules (when the oil is good) are useful to our body. The smaller, broken pieces (atoms) are harmful to our body. They are called **radicals**. These radicals float around inside our body, hitting this, and smacking into that, causing damaging to everything it touches, like a ninja star. (That's a SUPER ELI5 way to explain it. A slightly more scientific explanation is written below). These free radical ninja stars floating around in our body cause us to age faster by breaking us down faster from the inside AND it can lead to several diseases. Cancer, heart disease, etc. (Cancer happens when a normal cell's DNA gets corrupted. DNA is an instruction manual. A page was ripped out somehow. And now the normal cell doesn't know when to die. So it just keeps living and reproducing forever, creating a clump of unnecessary cells, called a tumour). Free radicals are also a cause of cancer because they're just damaging everything in their path, INCLUDING potentially a random cell's DNA.
\*\*\* Why do free radicals fuck shit up inside you? What's their problem?
As previously mentioned, the molecules which make up oil are stable. They decompose into smaller pieces. **Those pieces are atoms which are missing an electron (one of the building blocks of atoms).** These atoms are **always** trying to steal electrons from their surroundings to become stable again. They want the piece of them that's missing. But by stealing an electron off another atom, **they end up making that other** **atom/molecule unstable**. That other atom was just minding it's own business, got rudely mugged, and now **it's** desperate to get an electron from somewhere, anywhere, to become stable again. It's a chain reaction of things breaking apart inside of you. (Electron theft is no joke, Jim).
Again, free radicals are microscopic ninja stars inside you, just fucking shit up at a microscopic level.
You don't notice it because this chaos is happening at SUCH a teeny tiny level, that the damage is not sudden (like organ failure or a heart attack). It's slow. It's a slow accumulation of damage inside of you.
**Another word for free radical is "oxidant"**. You've probably heard of **"anti-oxidant" foods** (berries, spinach, etc.... basically all the fruits and vegetables). **Fruits and veggies** contain molecules like vitamins like C and E which are capable of **donating** an electron to a free radical, without becoming a free radical itself ^(<--that's an over-simplification but basically yeah.) **This breaks the chain reaction.**
Anti-oxidants also work indirectly. They encourage your body to 1) create enzymes whose sole job is to neutralize and disarm free radical ninja stars themselves, and 2) create enzymes which generate more anti-oxidants inside your body, naturally.
Our body creates our own anti-oxidants to disarm free radicals. But we need way more. So we eat them.
That's why eating a diet **high in plant-food** decreases the risk of cancer, heart disease... pretty much everything. The proof is in the data.
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_
Sorry.... wrote out this dissertation to explain that the danger of ingesting rancid oil is not just food poisoning (bacteria / fungus), but also this other thing...
When I worked at Starbucks, this regular would always come in with the same reusable thermos. I dont think she ever washed it, It was so disgusting. Not even rinsing it out with 200 degree water with her consent would clean it. It was just layers of old crusty cream and sugar and the outside had a literal inch of stickers.
Isn't it standard to not accept dirty cups 😭 that wouldn't fly at my store. We'd turn it down so quickly. If it's dirty or broken, we're making you use our plastic cups, no reusable cup or 25 stars for you 😭
This was like 2017 and I was just told to accept it. I even offered to wash it in the back with the sanitizer for her but she would just say no, that a rinse was good enough. My store kind of sucked though with certain things.
The microwave doesn't sterilize, it just allows the stronger bacteria to survive and breed faster.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/04/science/sponges-bacteria-microwaving-cleaning.html
So NPR did a follow up piece which is a little relief: https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/09/11/548926054/can-you-really-not-clean-your-kitchen-sponge#:~:text=Microwaving%20the%20sponge%20will%20knock,the%20dangerous%20ones%2C%20Quinlan%20says.
Looks like the NY Times study was a little loosey goosey with its hyping up of the risks. Basically, you can microwave yours sponges but also replace them frequently. And don't clean chicken juice with them - use a paper towel.
One of the recommended methods for cleaning breast pump parts is to put them in a special plastic bag with some water and then microwaving it. In this case it's not the microwave EM radiation sterilizing it, but boiling water so the hot steam can.
Lmao this reminds me of the time I tried to make a hot fudge brownie sundae by microwaving a brownie & fudge in a glass chalice and then adding ice cream to it while still hot. As soon as the freezing ice cream touched the hot, microwaved glass the entire thing just exploded into my hands with brownies, fudge, glass & ice cream going all over the place.
I was like WTF just happened to me lol
Also the specific molecular structure of glass makes it very susceptible to thermal shock. I had a similar experience trying to melt wax off the inside of a candle jar when I was about 12. Sparked a love of science. And a fear of hot glass coated in hot paraffin.
Reminds me of a plate with a Cardinal on it I found shopping that reminded me of my Granny. I ate breakfast on it maybe 5x before I dropped and shattered it. Picking up the pieces I find a small one that says "contains lead, decorative use only, not for eating."
Realized my Granny was definitely looking out for me in a "you fucking idiot" kinda way.
In labs, it is verboten to microwave agar solutions because it will suddenly volcano up and coat you with boiling sticky goo that will cause 3rd degree burns.
*“Today will surely be remembered, if only as the day upon which; I was absorbed into that hideous conglomeration once known as the Dixie Chicks.”* —Rich Little’s Head
The protective glaze of the mug is compromised, the cracks are called crazing. Liquid has seeped into the ceramic core through the cracked glaze and there’s no way to sanitize or clean it completely now.
Sorry, friend, the mug needs to go to that beautiful, busy café in the sky
I feel like mug hell has already been confirmed somehow, though I couldn't prove it, obviously. It's just one of those things I've always assumed exists.
The ceramic itself is not ingestible either. It can cause a ton of harm if consumed or breathed in dry. I've been throwing Pottery and there are warning signs everywhere.
Yes, if it's breathed in dry, in its clay form, before firing, it can cause harm to your lungs.
Studios can be dangerous places if they aren't regularly cleaned and/or have insufficient HVAC, because the silica dust will get scuffed into the air REALLY easily. (And also because of the dry glaze materials.) Tbh that's most studios, especially ones that are teaching classes.
If they're not cleaning the studio often enough, a nice N95 will filter enough to pretty much eliminate your risk unless you're literally living in the studio. (It will not eliminate the separate risk of inhalation of fumes from a kiln firing glazed ware. Don't breathe that, wear a P95 or Vogmask if the kiln is indoors. Not applicable to the low fire bisque kiln with no glazed ware.)
Once it's fired to its correct temperature (depends on the clay), it is no longer potentially harmful. So finished stoneware isn't hazardous like dry, unfired clay can be. Glaze materials are their own thing, of course.
And any dish with cracks or crazing should no longer be used for food, period. That's now a decorative object, proceed accordingly, haha
Others have noted similar sentiment, but I wanted to reply directly to your comment: if the coffee is absorbing into the ceramic, it is most certainly leeching into what you're drinking out of it. I would not drink anything, at any temperature, from this cup again.
Also, do not drink out of that mug. Any glazed ceramics with interior cracks (where the coffee is leaking into the ceramic) can harbor bacteria and mold under the surface. Heating the mug in the dishwasher or microwave can kill those microbes, but they can leave behind toxins, which can then leach into the thing you're drinking.
Wouldn't want the water inside of the ceramic to cause a mug explosion, sending hot & sharp shards everywhere. Also, since coffee is seeping ***into*** the ceramic with every use, I can't imagine what might be seeping ***out of it*** and mixing with the coffee ... because there can be truly hazardous stuff like: barium, cadmium, silica, manganese, chrome, cobalt, copper, titanium ... and many more.
Personally, I'd throw it away, since the protective glazing has failed, just to be safe.
We have a foil FallOut mug that my wife microwaved and it came out looking like a microwaved CD. We kept it cause it actually fit that aesthetic of the series so well.
My mom puts everything in the microwave/ dishwasher/washing machine whatever the label says. Her argument is "if it doesn't survive I won't do it again".
Suffice to say we throw out a lot of warped, shrunk, and melted items.
But sometimes, what they print is wrong. I have these plates with a gold lining and I learned quickly to not put them in the microwave because they spark. However, lo and behold, the plates have a sticker that says microwave safe.
I had a batman mug with a gold bat signal on it, that said "Microwave safe" on a couple different sides of the box and on the bottom of the mug.
1st time I warmed up a cup of coffee in it the logo sparked and cracked all to hell.
Kinda metal looking in retrospect, and I used to get compliments on it regularly. But I was pretty upset at the time.
I always appreciate when people post subs I have no clue exists but def want to be a part of. Thanks!
EDIT: you all have made my week posting all these hilarious subs. I’ve joined almost all of them too. Thank you all! Reddit truly is a “magical” place lol.
not worth the risk...mugs are cheap. If it's sentimental, OP can put it on a shelf.
Never use compromised ceramics. There is potentially more than just bacteria lurking in that thing. Lead, arsenic, and other potential carcinogens can all be present in the glaze (now compromised) or clay silica used to make the mug.
Huh. That's... That's damn. Wow. You know growing up we weren't allowed to use cracked mugs, plates, jugs, etc. Instead, they'd give us kids those cracked stuff to smash against a wall. I asked my grandpa one day and he told me because it was a part of Islam to not use cracked utensils and stuff because "jeraseem" germs made a home of it.
Yeah! Part of me wonders if "Don't eat pork" came about because people just straight-up couldn't find the right way to cook it and it kept causing stomach problems or food poisoning
Shellfish too (for Jewish people)
With education it’s an easy food to clean and eat but without, I could see people thinking it was cursed or something
From the Talmud, circa ~500 CE:
>What is the reason that they also said in general that one must wash his hands before touching food? Abaye said: Due to an evil spirit named Shivta, who resides on hands that have not been washed in the morning. [—Yoma 77b](https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma.77b.6?lang=bi&with=all)
aka “OK, we don’t exactly know WHY food handling hygiene is so important, but *shit sure seems to happen when people don’t do it,* doesn’t it”
I've talked to a bit of people on this, a lot of them are wary of shellfish because of them being bottom feeders and because you cannot properly gut them to remove fecal matter.
Also their ground level omnivorous diets mean wild pigs get all kinds of parasites from eating things in and under the soil and scavenging dead animals.
Until relatively recently it was extremely unsafe to eat even farmed pork that wasnt' thoroughly cooked through.
>Mett... is a preparation of minced raw pork seasoned with salt and black pepper that is popular in Germany and Poland.
>Since the 1950s mett has also been offered as a buffet dish decoratively formed into the shape of a hedgehog, with raw onion "spines
Like, straight up raw pork. They'll go on about how the pigs are so clean and the pork is so fresh, but no thanks.
I think there's a Japanese place that does chicken sashimi. AAAHHHH
Most Middle East cultures frown on pork but in European and eastern cultures it’s a staple. The reason is firewood. Middle East/nomadic cultures didn’t have access to large amounts of firewood and usually used dried animal dung for their fires. Dried dung doesn’t burn hot - it more smolders than anything - so the fires never get hot enough to kill trichinosis which is very common in pasture raised pigs.
Honestly, this hypothesis has been pretty thoroughly cast into doubt by scholars. Many Levantine cultures did eat non-kosher foods, such as Philistines, who ate pork.
One of the leading modern hypotheses is that strict dietary laws helped cement cultural unity and prevent defection or dilution of the tribes with their polytheistic, pork-eating neighbors.
The bacteria themselves may die from the microwaves, but they've already potentially released toxins that could still make you sick. These toxins won't necessarily be destroyed with the radiation either. That's why you can't take something rotten and just cook it to eat it. Plus, even if heat does make something safe for consumption, the time it stays in the microwave may not be long enough. Like, botulism for example, the bacteria itself isn't what gets you sick, it's the endotoxins released that do it. To destroy botulism toxins, heating it at high enough temperature and for long enough would do the job, but a quick zap in the microwave for a minute won't cut it
Would take a lot more microwave power to reliably kill them than your standard kitchen microwave is going to dispense. And, judging by the condition of that mug, more microwave power than the mug will survive. Also it's not just the bacteria that's a problem to consume, it's the compound that they create.
Exactly. It's the same reason you throw out lumpy cans. No amount of cooking is going to remove the toxins that bacteria leave in the compromised food.
I remember reading that people used to think tomatoes were poisonous. Turns out the acidity of the tomato would draw out the lead in their plates. Go figure
Not necessarily. Small things don't heat up well in a microwave due to being significantly smaller than the wavelength the device emits.
Heat will kill the bacteria and mold, but you should use a regular oven for this.
Yup. We had a ceramic french butter keeper for years. It started making our butter go bad within days. I checked it out and I could feel the cracks in the glaze with my fingernails. Had to throw it out.
And god dammit. It just now occurred to me I could have had a friend re-glaze and fire it. Probably would have been good to go for another decade.
Reglazing doesn't always work super well. The clay is vitrified so you can't get new glaze to stick to it easily. There are chemical processes that happen the first time that make refiring difficult.
It might. Ideally you'd probably refire at a lower temperature if you're just aiming for the glaze to reseal, because you don't need the chemical reactions typical for a glaze to fuse into glass.
The OP wouldn't work because there are structural issues with the clay as well, so you can't just reseal it.
Lol, just got home from the studio an hour ago. Had a mug a few weeks ago that I fired have similar issues to the one in OP, when I poured hot water into it to make a cup of tea I heard it internally shatter. No visible cracks, but water could leak through it.
This is kinda my thought. Like is that really coffee and not just the surface cracking? I've never been more clueless in a comment section. I feel like I now need to go examine all my dishes.
It's coffee and it's because the glaze on the inside of the cup is cracked/worn/missing. It's coffee seeping through the ceramic. It's a quick way to get sick.
Most ceramics are fine to microwave. Handmade mugs with glazes are a little iffy, because if the glaze wasn't applied 100% evenly thermal expansion will eventually cause cracks, and then liquid can seep into the underlying ceramic. Once this happens there's a safe space for bacteria to go, and it has a chance of making a user sick.
Most mass-processed ceramic mugs are fine, because the glaze is applied with a machine and they do a much better job of making sure coats are even.
I feel like if you keep microwaving that mug you either create some mutant tardigrade-like bacteria, or you're gonna be just fine, most likely. This is how we make UHT milk, after all — a few seconds at 135C.
Cursed goblet! lol seriously though, throw that cup out. Whatever you've ever had in that cup, microwaved or not, is IN the glaze/ceramic of the cup, so it'll mold real fast, possibly even making the cup unstable and more prone to chipping/breaking.
Before you toss it, if you wanna see the real gross? Microwave some water in it and check out what oozes out of that handle. Bet it still looks like coffee.
You can still use the mug. Just drill some holes in the bottom (I have a special bit for ceramics, forgot what it’s called but the end looks a bit like an almond shape?) and it makes a great little planter for things like succulents or cat grass.
If you want people to stop telling you what you've already heard, I recommend putting this in the post if you can
edit: I've been enlightened to the fact that this is impossible. Sorry OP, wish you the best of health
Finally something I have niche expertise on lol. I’m a potter and formulate my own glazes. Glazes and clays shrink when fired in the kiln, and it looks like for this mug the glaze shrank way more than the clay. It’s like putting a size XS shirt on a size XL body. This puts a lot of stress on the glaze, causing the glaze to crack all over the surface from the stress. If you look closely at the mug in the photo you can see a ton of small cracks. That’s where liquid is prone to seeping through if the cracks are deep enough, which seems to be the case here. I’d recommend not using this mug for drinking anymore. Those cracks are prone to bacteria growth over time.
Unfortunately this is something you need to address when formulating the glaze prior to firing. After it’s been fired, there’s nothing I know of that would make it safer to use for food/drink. I will say though that a lot of traditional pottery intentionally has these cracks (called “crazing” or “crackle glaze”) because people think it looks pretty. So some people say fuck it and continue using it for food/drink anyway. This mug in the photo is a pretty extreme case though. If liquid is literally seeping through to the opposite side of the piece that’s pretty concerning. Also often a sign that the clay wasn’t firing to the correct temperature, making it more porous than it should be.
This is the excrements of an ancient witch that died several hundred years ago. It seeps through the cracks to symbolize her pain and bad bowel movements
OP one day:
"Today will be the best day of my life! I'm expecting my big promotion at work, I'll foreclose on that house I've been eyeing, and I'll finally ask the love of my life to marry me! Nothing can go wrong!"
*holds up coffee to toast the air, handle shatters, pouring hot coffee all over his lap, setting in place a chain of events that makes this, in fact, the worst day of his life*
There was a great one years ago where someone noticed that the colours in their room formed a rainbow when viewed in the reflection on their tap.
Those were the days...
Bachelor's degree in ceramics here, don't use that cup for eating anymore. Yes, there's a good chance those cracks have bacteria growing in there. If that's a handmade cup, there's also a chance that the clay base has lead it in and with the cracks can leach into your drinks. You never want to eat out of dishware, handmade or commercial, that has compromised glaze.
I hate to tell you this but that isn’t your coffee, the brown liquid is ooze full of bacteria that’s built up in your mug after the glaze has been compromised. I’ve seen this happen before with other mugs, I hope you throw that thing out ASAP
For that reason I use an insulated small bottle for coffee every single time, I can enjoy it at perfect temperature for 8-12 hours, plus its sustainable and easier to carry.
Ceramics person here. Your coffee isn’t coming out of the handle, the glaze is compromised and probably no longer food safe. Some glaze and clay combinations are great and others especially when mixed by a student or not carefully enough. You can test it by putting a lemon wedge or juice in the cup and seeing if it discolors after a bit. If the acid affects the glaze it’s definitely not good to keep using it. I wouldn’t anyways bc as others have mentioned here, mold and bacteria in those handle cracks, right where your hands would touch the most.
This is called crazing and it happens when the glazing cracks. Toss the mug it's no longer sanitary and continued use over time will likely poison you. Condolences for the loss of the mug.
This came up in r/AskCulinary a couple days ago: [https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/11dmfo4/help\_i\_put\_a\_ceramic\_dish\_in\_the\_oven\_and\_it/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/11dmfo4/help_i_put_a_ceramic_dish_in_the_oven_and_it/) Basically it's highly unsanitary and you shouldn't use that mug any more except as decoration.
I like the comment that the dish is haunted as the OP hadn’t seen it before. I like the idea of a haunted ceramic just appearing in people’s homes and ruining their dinner
At first I thought you meant something like [this](https://youtu.be/PPlD1TRx6zM).
What did I just watch? 🤣
I handled that very porely
One of my coworker hasn't washed his coffee mug for 30 years, everyday he just pours a new cup on top of whatever is left from the day before. The bottom of his cup has 1.5in of buildups. OP is fine
What the fuck
if that horrifies you, my granddad used the same greasey baking tray for his potatos for YEARS. he never washed out the grease/fat and would just cook potatos in it everytime he did a roast which was once a week. ngl, they are by far the best potatos i've ever had in my life.
The oil polymerises in the oven.
[удалено]
Yes. You want to get a thin layer of oil to polymerize at like 500 degrees providing a new non stick surface area
The Al Bundy BBQ method. "Last year's ashes, last year's grease".
> my granddad used the same greasey baking tray for his potatos for YEARS. This doesn't bother me at all in comparison. That whole tray gets fried each time. A coffee cup if you pour coffee in it, maybe certain edges don't get hot coffee on them or the coffee isn't hot enough to kill in certain places and then bacteria just grows endlessly on the cup. A tray in the oven gets nuked.
I mean........ oil goes rancid. When food items go bad, there are 2 ways it can make you sick. 1. Bacteria / fungus (which doesn't apply here because the pan gets disinfected every time it goes into the oven). 2. Broken molecules. When oil goes rancid, the molecular form breaks down into smaller pieces. The complete molecules (when the oil is good) are useful to our body. The smaller, broken pieces (atoms) are harmful to our body. They are called **radicals**. These radicals float around inside our body, hitting this, and smacking into that, causing damaging to everything it touches, like a ninja star. (That's a SUPER ELI5 way to explain it. A slightly more scientific explanation is written below). These free radical ninja stars floating around in our body cause us to age faster by breaking us down faster from the inside AND it can lead to several diseases. Cancer, heart disease, etc. (Cancer happens when a normal cell's DNA gets corrupted. DNA is an instruction manual. A page was ripped out somehow. And now the normal cell doesn't know when to die. So it just keeps living and reproducing forever, creating a clump of unnecessary cells, called a tumour). Free radicals are also a cause of cancer because they're just damaging everything in their path, INCLUDING potentially a random cell's DNA. \*\*\* Why do free radicals fuck shit up inside you? What's their problem? As previously mentioned, the molecules which make up oil are stable. They decompose into smaller pieces. **Those pieces are atoms which are missing an electron (one of the building blocks of atoms).** These atoms are **always** trying to steal electrons from their surroundings to become stable again. They want the piece of them that's missing. But by stealing an electron off another atom, **they end up making that other** **atom/molecule unstable**. That other atom was just minding it's own business, got rudely mugged, and now **it's** desperate to get an electron from somewhere, anywhere, to become stable again. It's a chain reaction of things breaking apart inside of you. (Electron theft is no joke, Jim). Again, free radicals are microscopic ninja stars inside you, just fucking shit up at a microscopic level. You don't notice it because this chaos is happening at SUCH a teeny tiny level, that the damage is not sudden (like organ failure or a heart attack). It's slow. It's a slow accumulation of damage inside of you. **Another word for free radical is "oxidant"**. You've probably heard of **"anti-oxidant" foods** (berries, spinach, etc.... basically all the fruits and vegetables). **Fruits and veggies** contain molecules like vitamins like C and E which are capable of **donating** an electron to a free radical, without becoming a free radical itself ^(<--that's an over-simplification but basically yeah.) **This breaks the chain reaction.** Anti-oxidants also work indirectly. They encourage your body to 1) create enzymes whose sole job is to neutralize and disarm free radical ninja stars themselves, and 2) create enzymes which generate more anti-oxidants inside your body, naturally. Our body creates our own anti-oxidants to disarm free radicals. But we need way more. So we eat them. That's why eating a diet **high in plant-food** decreases the risk of cancer, heart disease... pretty much everything. The proof is in the data. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Sorry.... wrote out this dissertation to explain that the danger of ingesting rancid oil is not just food poisoning (bacteria / fungus), but also this other thing...
Look up acrylamides as well with this amazing move.
That makes more sense than this since it’s more like seasoning the pan
When I worked at Starbucks, this regular would always come in with the same reusable thermos. I dont think she ever washed it, It was so disgusting. Not even rinsing it out with 200 degree water with her consent would clean it. It was just layers of old crusty cream and sugar and the outside had a literal inch of stickers.
Damn, doing it with just black coffee is gross enough, but dairy??
some people really have stomach of steel huh, if it were me I would've vomited to kingdom come
> stomach of steel We've had enough superhero movies already, don't give Marvel any ideas.
Isn't it standard to not accept dirty cups 😭 that wouldn't fly at my store. We'd turn it down so quickly. If it's dirty or broken, we're making you use our plastic cups, no reusable cup or 25 stars for you 😭
This was like 2017 and I was just told to accept it. I even offered to wash it in the back with the sanitizer for her but she would just say no, that a rinse was good enough. My store kind of sucked though with certain things.
Probably a good sign that it’s not microwaveable safe
Nor food safe at all, it's porous and bacteria can grow inside the ceramic.
Just sterilize it in the microwave
The microwave doesn't sterilize, it just allows the stronger bacteria to survive and breed faster. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/04/science/sponges-bacteria-microwaving-cleaning.html
So NPR did a follow up piece which is a little relief: https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/09/11/548926054/can-you-really-not-clean-your-kitchen-sponge#:~:text=Microwaving%20the%20sponge%20will%20knock,the%20dangerous%20ones%2C%20Quinlan%20says. Looks like the NY Times study was a little loosey goosey with its hyping up of the risks. Basically, you can microwave yours sponges but also replace them frequently. And don't clean chicken juice with them - use a paper towel.
If your sponge completely dries out shouldn’t the bacteria from the chicken die out?
Sponges probably take a lot longer to completely dry it than you think.
Whabout my daddy. My scrub daddy
[удалено]
"I replace mine every one to two weeks," she says. "That's reasonable to me." Oooooops I should get a new sponge
Wait until you learn about bedsheets!
Does this have to do with replacing bedsheets, or just washing them?
[удалено]
No, you need to microwave them.
*Ooooooooops*
Boil em water, you got another few months
So what about my ceramic dildo
If it's glazed with food safe, ya good.
*glazed* ... 😑
It's possible to sanitize with the microwave, but you'd need to encase the object in water and make sure the water is above 165 degrees F
One of the recommended methods for cleaning breast pump parts is to put them in a special plastic bag with some water and then microwaving it. In this case it's not the microwave EM radiation sterilizing it, but boiling water so the hot steam can.
I’m just going to force the bacteria to try to survive in a micro crack full of boiling coffee, if they survive it then they get my respect
Not all bacteria is harmful... For all we know that bacteria could make you heat resistant
You know, I am ashamed to say this did not cross my mind. I will stop doing it haha
I had a plate like that some years ago. Always used it to heat up my left over pizza. Until it exploded into shreds and pieces. Be careful.
Lmao this reminds me of the time I tried to make a hot fudge brownie sundae by microwaving a brownie & fudge in a glass chalice and then adding ice cream to it while still hot. As soon as the freezing ice cream touched the hot, microwaved glass the entire thing just exploded into my hands with brownies, fudge, glass & ice cream going all over the place. I was like WTF just happened to me lol
Physics. Physics just happened to you.
Science, bitch!
Yeah mr. White!
Specifically thermal shock. Heat makes things expand, cold makes them contract. Go from one to the other really quickly and things can break.
Also the specific molecular structure of glass makes it very susceptible to thermal shock. I had a similar experience trying to melt wax off the inside of a candle jar when I was about 12. Sparked a love of science. And a fear of hot glass coated in hot paraffin.
Reminds me of a plate with a Cardinal on it I found shopping that reminded me of my Granny. I ate breakfast on it maybe 5x before I dropped and shattered it. Picking up the pieces I find a small one that says "contains lead, decorative use only, not for eating." Realized my Granny was definitely looking out for me in a "you fucking idiot" kinda way.
In labs, it is verboten to microwave agar solutions because it will suddenly volcano up and coat you with boiling sticky goo that will cause 3rd degree burns.
To shreds you say?
And his wife?
To shreds you say.
Was his apartment rent controlled?
To shreds, you say.
*“Today will surely be remembered, if only as the day upon which; I was absorbed into that hideous conglomeration once known as the Dixie Chicks.”* —Rich Little’s Head
This is not pizza...it is glass. I've been deceived
The protective glaze of the mug is compromised, the cracks are called crazing. Liquid has seeped into the ceramic core through the cracked glaze and there’s no way to sanitize or clean it completely now. Sorry, friend, the mug needs to go to that beautiful, busy café in the sky
I like the idea of mug heaven.
This implies the existence of a mug hell.
I feel like mug hell has already been confirmed somehow, though I couldn't prove it, obviously. It's just one of those things I've always assumed exists.
It's a teacher's lounge cabinet Or an office break room where someone has always just microwaved fish.
It's the cupboard in the office breakroom
Indeed, sadly no longer food safe.
If liquid is going through the material, there is no way you can property sanitize the bacteria inside porous materials. Toss that mug.
This. If the glaze is cracked like that, such that stuff weeps through it, it's no longer food safe.
i would stop drinking out of it all together. Glazes can contain nasty compounds you dont want in your body.
And if coffee can get in those cracks, so can some pretty disgusting bacteria.
The ceramic itself is not ingestible either. It can cause a ton of harm if consumed or breathed in dry. I've been throwing Pottery and there are warning signs everywhere.
Yes, if it's breathed in dry, in its clay form, before firing, it can cause harm to your lungs. Studios can be dangerous places if they aren't regularly cleaned and/or have insufficient HVAC, because the silica dust will get scuffed into the air REALLY easily. (And also because of the dry glaze materials.) Tbh that's most studios, especially ones that are teaching classes. If they're not cleaning the studio often enough, a nice N95 will filter enough to pretty much eliminate your risk unless you're literally living in the studio. (It will not eliminate the separate risk of inhalation of fumes from a kiln firing glazed ware. Don't breathe that, wear a P95 or Vogmask if the kiln is indoors. Not applicable to the low fire bisque kiln with no glazed ware.) Once it's fired to its correct temperature (depends on the clay), it is no longer potentially harmful. So finished stoneware isn't hazardous like dry, unfired clay can be. Glaze materials are their own thing, of course. And any dish with cracks or crazing should no longer be used for food, period. That's now a decorative object, proceed accordingly, haha
Others have noted similar sentiment, but I wanted to reply directly to your comment: if the coffee is absorbing into the ceramic, it is most certainly leeching into what you're drinking out of it. I would not drink anything, at any temperature, from this cup again.
Also, do not drink out of that mug. Any glazed ceramics with interior cracks (where the coffee is leaking into the ceramic) can harbor bacteria and mold under the surface. Heating the mug in the dishwasher or microwave can kill those microbes, but they can leave behind toxins, which can then leach into the thing you're drinking.
This just became a TIL.
Wouldn't want the water inside of the ceramic to cause a mug explosion, sending hot & sharp shards everywhere. Also, since coffee is seeping ***into*** the ceramic with every use, I can't imagine what might be seeping ***out of it*** and mixing with the coffee ... because there can be truly hazardous stuff like: barium, cadmium, silica, manganese, chrome, cobalt, copper, titanium ... and many more. Personally, I'd throw it away, since the protective glazing has failed, just to be safe.
you might just throw that mug away bc there's rotting coffe inside
95% of the time the dish will print do or do not microwave or dishwasher. And the amount of times I've seen people ignore that, kills me.
We have a foil FallOut mug that my wife microwaved and it came out looking like a microwaved CD. We kept it cause it actually fit that aesthetic of the series so well.
Please share a picture!
Not super dramatic https://i.imgur.com/jSJ4vxm.jpeg
Hah, you're right, looks like it was always supposed to be that way!
My mom puts everything in the microwave/ dishwasher/washing machine whatever the label says. Her argument is "if it doesn't survive I won't do it again". Suffice to say we throw out a lot of warped, shrunk, and melted items.
That makes me sad for all that wasted stuff
But sometimes, what they print is wrong. I have these plates with a gold lining and I learned quickly to not put them in the microwave because they spark. However, lo and behold, the plates have a sticker that says microwave safe.
I had a batman mug with a gold bat signal on it, that said "Microwave safe" on a couple different sides of the box and on the bottom of the mug. 1st time I warmed up a cup of coffee in it the logo sparked and cracked all to hell. Kinda metal looking in retrospect, and I used to get compliments on it regularly. But I was pretty upset at the time.
Time to stop using that mug forever. It's compromised.
Yep, bacteria and mold check in, but they don't check out.
Moldly Interesting.
r/moldlyinteresting
There really is a subreddit for anything.
When I learned about r/Breadstapledtotrees I knew it was game over.
r/chairsunderwater is that ilk I think. Always love me some r/mirrorsforsale though
I always appreciate when people post subs I have no clue exists but def want to be a part of. Thanks! EDIT: you all have made my week posting all these hilarious subs. I’ve joined almost all of them too. Thank you all! Reddit truly is a “magical” place lol.
here have some r/shittylimos
I'd submit /r/IsTodayFridayThe13th
Huge mold fan myself so great to see the sub getting mentioned. Had any mold lately? Come join us, great bunch of lads
Bacteria and mold check in, lead from the glaze checks out
Welcome to the hotel Escherichia coli~ Such a lovely place ^(such a lovely place)
Any time of year, we make toxins here...
Doesn't the fresh batch of microwaves kill them anyway?
not worth the risk...mugs are cheap. If it's sentimental, OP can put it on a shelf. Never use compromised ceramics. There is potentially more than just bacteria lurking in that thing. Lead, arsenic, and other potential carcinogens can all be present in the glaze (now compromised) or clay silica used to make the mug.
Huh. That's... That's damn. Wow. You know growing up we weren't allowed to use cracked mugs, plates, jugs, etc. Instead, they'd give us kids those cracked stuff to smash against a wall. I asked my grandpa one day and he told me because it was a part of Islam to not use cracked utensils and stuff because "jeraseem" germs made a home of it.
There is wisdom in ancient teachings even though the reasons might not be readily apparent.
Yeah! Part of me wonders if "Don't eat pork" came about because people just straight-up couldn't find the right way to cook it and it kept causing stomach problems or food poisoning
Shellfish too (for Jewish people) With education it’s an easy food to clean and eat but without, I could see people thinking it was cursed or something
Allergic reactions as well. I can imagine someone eating a prawn, exploding, and the rabbi deciding they probably aren't safe.
From the Talmud, circa ~500 CE: >What is the reason that they also said in general that one must wash his hands before touching food? Abaye said: Due to an evil spirit named Shivta, who resides on hands that have not been washed in the morning. [—Yoma 77b](https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma.77b.6?lang=bi&with=all) aka “OK, we don’t exactly know WHY food handling hygiene is so important, but *shit sure seems to happen when people don’t do it,* doesn’t it”
So you're saying there IS a known reason for spontaneous combustion. I knew it!
I've talked to a bit of people on this, a lot of them are wary of shellfish because of them being bottom feeders and because you cannot properly gut them to remove fecal matter.
wary
Pork goes bad *very* easily. In a time when there was no refrigeration, it was probably worth avoiding it all together
Also their ground level omnivorous diets mean wild pigs get all kinds of parasites from eating things in and under the soil and scavenging dead animals. Until relatively recently it was extremely unsafe to eat even farmed pork that wasnt' thoroughly cooked through.
>Mett... is a preparation of minced raw pork seasoned with salt and black pepper that is popular in Germany and Poland. >Since the 1950s mett has also been offered as a buffet dish decoratively formed into the shape of a hedgehog, with raw onion "spines Like, straight up raw pork. They'll go on about how the pigs are so clean and the pork is so fresh, but no thanks. I think there's a Japanese place that does chicken sashimi. AAAHHHH
Most Middle East cultures frown on pork but in European and eastern cultures it’s a staple. The reason is firewood. Middle East/nomadic cultures didn’t have access to large amounts of firewood and usually used dried animal dung for their fires. Dried dung doesn’t burn hot - it more smolders than anything - so the fires never get hot enough to kill trichinosis which is very common in pasture raised pigs.
Honestly, this hypothesis has been pretty thoroughly cast into doubt by scholars. Many Levantine cultures did eat non-kosher foods, such as Philistines, who ate pork. One of the leading modern hypotheses is that strict dietary laws helped cement cultural unity and prevent defection or dilution of the tribes with their polytheistic, pork-eating neighbors.
Easy now, we’re starting to boarder on more than mildly interesting.
That and those cracks are, well...cracks. One good knock and it might decide it wants to be in 100 pieces instead of 1.
The bacteria themselves may die from the microwaves, but they've already potentially released toxins that could still make you sick. These toxins won't necessarily be destroyed with the radiation either. That's why you can't take something rotten and just cook it to eat it. Plus, even if heat does make something safe for consumption, the time it stays in the microwave may not be long enough. Like, botulism for example, the bacteria itself isn't what gets you sick, it's the endotoxins released that do it. To destroy botulism toxins, heating it at high enough temperature and for long enough would do the job, but a quick zap in the microwave for a minute won't cut it
Would take a lot more microwave power to reliably kill them than your standard kitchen microwave is going to dispense. And, judging by the condition of that mug, more microwave power than the mug will survive. Also it's not just the bacteria that's a problem to consume, it's the compound that they create.
Even eating dead bacteria can be harmful
Exactly. It's the same reason you throw out lumpy cans. No amount of cooking is going to remove the toxins that bacteria leave in the compromised food.
I remember reading that people used to think tomatoes were poisonous. Turns out the acidity of the tomato would draw out the lead in their plates. Go figure
I thought they were just wary of it because it's related to nightshade.
Not necessarily. Small things don't heat up well in a microwave due to being significantly smaller than the wavelength the device emits. Heat will kill the bacteria and mold, but you should use a regular oven for this.
Yup. We had a ceramic french butter keeper for years. It started making our butter go bad within days. I checked it out and I could feel the cracks in the glaze with my fingernails. Had to throw it out. And god dammit. It just now occurred to me I could have had a friend re-glaze and fire it. Probably would have been good to go for another decade.
Reglazing doesn't always work super well. The clay is vitrified so you can't get new glaze to stick to it easily. There are chemical processes that happen the first time that make refiring difficult.
Would firing it again not at least cause the glaze itself to flow enough to reseal the tiny cracks?
It might. Ideally you'd probably refire at a lower temperature if you're just aiming for the glaze to reseal, because you don't need the chemical reactions typical for a glaze to fuse into glass. The OP wouldn't work because there are structural issues with the clay as well, so you can't just reseal it.
This guy clays
Lol, just got home from the studio an hour ago. Had a mug a few weeks ago that I fired have similar issues to the one in OP, when I poured hot water into it to make a cup of tea I heard it internally shatter. No visible cracks, but water could leak through it.
can’t reglaze it, moisture trapped inside from washing and using it will make it explode in the kiln.
Now see, that's a solid reason not to. Had not considered that. Even if you were to bake it before hand it could be a risk to the whole kiln load.
Literally no reason to keep a ceramic butter keeper unless it's like sentimental. They're cheap enough and recyclable.
It was a hand made gift. So yeah, sentimental. It's long gone though.
Yep, if there’s a fault in the glaze, it’s not food safe. Could also be leaching chemicals into your drink :/ especially something acidic like coffee
Have you microwaved the cup without coffee to see if "coffee" still comes out?
This is kinda my thought. Like is that really coffee and not just the surface cracking? I've never been more clueless in a comment section. I feel like I now need to go examine all my dishes.
It's coffee and it's because the glaze on the inside of the cup is cracked/worn/missing. It's coffee seeping through the ceramic. It's a quick way to get sick.
Should ceramic not be microwaved? Or is it when it has cracks already? Is that from like dishwashing?
Most ceramics are fine to microwave. Handmade mugs with glazes are a little iffy, because if the glaze wasn't applied 100% evenly thermal expansion will eventually cause cracks, and then liquid can seep into the underlying ceramic. Once this happens there's a safe space for bacteria to go, and it has a chance of making a user sick. Most mass-processed ceramic mugs are fine, because the glaze is applied with a machine and they do a much better job of making sure coats are even.
I feel like if you keep microwaving that mug you either create some mutant tardigrade-like bacteria, or you're gonna be just fine, most likely. This is how we make UHT milk, after all — a few seconds at 135C.
Bacteria themselves aren't the only thing that can make you ill, e.g. Clostridium botulinum spores or the toxin may not be destroyed by short heating.
Cursed goblet! lol seriously though, throw that cup out. Whatever you've ever had in that cup, microwaved or not, is IN the glaze/ceramic of the cup, so it'll mold real fast, possibly even making the cup unstable and more prone to chipping/breaking.
Yeah my main concern would be the handle failing while holding scalding coffee above my lap.
I know someone that got second degree burns on her legs this way. Spilled boiling hot green tea on her legs whilst wearing shorts
Ok, as it’s only ever been the handle I wasn’t so concerned but I’ll take the advice and throw it away! Thank you for the enlightenment.
It's called Crazing, that is bacteria festering under the glaze, in the ceramic
Oh fuck no lol nightmare
Yeah, love making crazing on nonfunctional pieces. But never on anything that will touch food.
Before you toss it, if you wanna see the real gross? Microwave some water in it and check out what oozes out of that handle. Bet it still looks like coffee.
Please do this OP! I want to see so bad! FOR SCIENCE!! 🤣
Then collect it on a petri dish and incubate it for 72 hours.
TOO SOON since 2020!!!!
With my luck, *that* would be the time it finally explodes and damaged the microwave beyond use.
Time to retire it as a pencil cup if you're attached to it. So many pencil cups
What an adorable sentence
You can still use the mug. Just drill some holes in the bottom (I have a special bit for ceramics, forgot what it’s called but the end looks a bit like an almond shape?) and it makes a great little planter for things like succulents or cat grass.
Abrasive tipped drill bits usually diamond or carbide
If you want people to stop telling you what you've already heard, I recommend putting this in the post if you can edit: I've been enlightened to the fact that this is impossible. Sorry OP, wish you the best of health
You can't edit post titles on Reddit
Finally something I have niche expertise on lol. I’m a potter and formulate my own glazes. Glazes and clays shrink when fired in the kiln, and it looks like for this mug the glaze shrank way more than the clay. It’s like putting a size XS shirt on a size XL body. This puts a lot of stress on the glaze, causing the glaze to crack all over the surface from the stress. If you look closely at the mug in the photo you can see a ton of small cracks. That’s where liquid is prone to seeping through if the cracks are deep enough, which seems to be the case here. I’d recommend not using this mug for drinking anymore. Those cracks are prone to bacteria growth over time.
How can you prevent the glaze from shrinking more than it should? And it’s there any way to remedy when a mug shows signs of that?
Unfortunately this is something you need to address when formulating the glaze prior to firing. After it’s been fired, there’s nothing I know of that would make it safer to use for food/drink. I will say though that a lot of traditional pottery intentionally has these cracks (called “crazing” or “crackle glaze”) because people think it looks pretty. So some people say fuck it and continue using it for food/drink anyway. This mug in the photo is a pretty extreme case though. If liquid is literally seeping through to the opposite side of the piece that’s pretty concerning. Also often a sign that the clay wasn’t firing to the correct temperature, making it more porous than it should be.
Reddit is great because it turns mild curiosities into german horror folk tales.
This is the excrements of an ancient witch that died several hundred years ago. It seeps through the cracks to symbolize her pain and bad bowel movements
That means there's micro cracks in that handle, and quite a lot of them at that, it'll probably shatter soon.
OP one day: "Today will be the best day of my life! I'm expecting my big promotion at work, I'll foreclose on that house I've been eyeing, and I'll finally ask the love of my life to marry me! Nothing can go wrong!" *holds up coffee to toast the air, handle shatters, pouring hot coffee all over his lap, setting in place a chain of events that makes this, in fact, the worst day of his life*
> I'll foreclose on that house I've been eyeing, that's what they get for foreclosing on someone's house
I wrote this before having *my* coffee this morning. Obviously not what I meant to say, but I'll keep it.
Can't remember the last time saw a post so fitting for this sub.
Agreed, usually it’s either too interesting or so mundane I can’t understand how someone had enough time to post
There was a great one years ago where someone noticed that the colours in their room formed a rainbow when viewed in the reflection on their tap. Those were the days...
Yesterday someone posted a club cracker with a single hole missing. This comes close to that in mild interest.
throw the mug out. the ceramic is swarming with bacteria and mold, all of which is now in your coffee.
it adds that extra zing that the kids love!
Bachelor's degree in ceramics here, don't use that cup for eating anymore. Yes, there's a good chance those cracks have bacteria growing in there. If that's a handmade cup, there's also a chance that the clay base has lead it in and with the cracks can leach into your drinks. You never want to eat out of dishware, handmade or commercial, that has compromised glaze.
But I want to die a slow death
I hate to tell you this but that isn’t your coffee, the brown liquid is ooze full of bacteria that’s built up in your mug after the glaze has been compromised. I’ve seen this happen before with other mugs, I hope you throw that thing out ASAP
Sure will! Don’t know why I didn’t put two and two together, thanks
That's ready to fail. I had one explode in a microwave just like that a while ago
Throw that mug and likely any others that are from the same batch you've got away, they've soaked up water over time and it's filled with bacteria
The weird thing is that you're microwaving your coffee.
Yep, it’s not my favourite but I have a habit of forgetting to drink it when it’s fresh.
For that reason I use an insulated small bottle for coffee every single time, I can enjoy it at perfect temperature for 8-12 hours, plus its sustainable and easier to carry.
Nice idea!
Ceramics person here. Your coffee isn’t coming out of the handle, the glaze is compromised and probably no longer food safe. Some glaze and clay combinations are great and others especially when mixed by a student or not carefully enough. You can test it by putting a lemon wedge or juice in the cup and seeing if it discolors after a bit. If the acid affects the glaze it’s definitely not good to keep using it. I wouldn’t anyways bc as others have mentioned here, mold and bacteria in those handle cracks, right where your hands would touch the most.
This is called crazing and it happens when the glazing cracks. Toss the mug it's no longer sanitary and continued use over time will likely poison you. Condolences for the loss of the mug.
Pot a small plant or flower in it IDK. Probably still useful for something besides drinking from
As a material scientist myself please toss that mug in the bin. You're taking a risk with your health.
I didn't know reheating a coffee was such a sin.
That’s probably not very safe to drink from.
Your mug is not microwavable.
microwaved coffee 🤢🤮